How To Stay Motivated For The New Year

Keeping a podcast up and running is one of the most challenging things a host can do. There are a lot of hours that are required each week from a host and sometimes outsourcing the bulk of the work is not an option (for right now). There will be days where you will be discouraged and might not have the motivation to keep going and there will also be days where you're reminded why you produce a show week after week. Below are some tips to help keep you going far beyond your 100th episode.

Set A Goal Or A Benchmark

Setting goals might seem corny and overrated, but there's a reason why it works – you automatically set yourself up on a path with an end result. This helps you stay grounded and not float in the clouds with no direction. You don't always need to follow your goal down to the T, but having a guide as to where you want to be 6 months from now will push you towards something you want/desire.

Make Your Goals Specific

This new language helps you set an expectation and it also helps you measure whether or not you’re on the right track. 

One of the biggest reasons people fail at their goals is not because they're reaching too high, but because they don't define their goals well enough. For example, one of the biggest new years resolutions is to lose weight. Yes, losing weight is always great, but how much weight? How much weight do you need to lose in order for you to feel like you've 'done it'? People who write down specific goals, things they can measure, end up completing their goals or, at the very least, do not give up on their goals mid way through. Want to lose weight for the new year? Tell yourself you'll start by losing 15 pounds in the next x months instead of the generic 'lose weight'.

This same logic applies to podcasting. Do you want a certain amount of downloads per month/episode? Do you want to write more blog posts? Instead of saying, “I want to write more blog posts this year.” Change that language and say, “My goal is to write 2 blog posts a week.” This new language helps you set an expectation and it also helps you measure whether or not you're on the right track.

What Are Your Reasons?

As we get over the hurdle of finding a good goal that is inline with our podcast, we also have to remind ourselves why we are doing the things that we're doing. For every goal you have, write down as many reasons you can think of as to why you want this. This also gives you a good idea of how badly you personally want this versus what you think society wants from you.

When you have something you truly want to accomplish, you'll find many, many reasons to keep you going. If you're setting a goal to make outside influences happy, then you'll have a hard time finding the right reasons to pursue that goal. Find your own reasons for your own goals so that you do not end up working on someone else's dream.

Ask For It

Sure, we see that we have downloads to our show, but how many of those downloads are ‘real’? Do people enjoy it? 

If you don't ask, you'll never know, right? A big challenge podcasters face is not knowing whether or not their podcast is actually helpful to other people. Sure, we see that we have downloads to our show, but how many of those downloads are 'real'? Do people enjoy it? At the end of the day, are you just speaking to a wall?

This is a big pitfall for up and coming hosts, because they simply do not have the audience to help back them up. Whether we'd like to admit or not, we need the support of our listeners to help us carry on. If we do not have that support base, that feedback, we can feel empty when producing a podcast.

At the beginning or at the end of the show, all you have to do is ask your listeners. Ask them to email you if they have questions, ask them to write to you if they could relate to your guest or your own story, ask them for their personal stories; all you have to do is ask them. When you tell people want you want from them, they're more likely to do it. When you bring it to their attention, they'll more than likely take the time to let you know what they think. Some might be positive, some might be negative, but, as the old saying goes, there's no such thing as bad press.

About Podfly:

Podfly is a pre and post-production company that helps produce excellent sounding podcasts. We take care of intros, outros, editing, show notes, and we can even post your show on your website all for a great fee! Contact us today or email me personally at Ayn@podfly.net.